Help buying my first bandsaw(s)

[Tom Trees]

Not up to speed on a hundred year old cast iron saws, that is, if they go by specified throat capacity (blade to column)
or wheel size, but nearly all modern 2 wheeled saws say made since the 60's, the specification is referring to the wheel size, in inches or millimetres 20"/ 500 or even a single figure referring to the metric on some Italian saws.
That 3 wheeler saw would be an exception to what's regarded as the norm nowadays.
Many of the new wave (less than the last decade I believe) of machines from SCM/Minimax/Centauro (Italian saws)
have the wheel size also matching the resaw capacity,
with more powerful motors, and will probably be a bit taller and heavier than the last generation of saws from Italy.

The lighter of the industrial line Italian designs has been unchanged since the late 1980's, and probably still available yet, I'm not sure on that one?
Although the more recent of them (still old generation) have a bit of extra dust extraction (another hole cut into the frames under trunion)
and maybe some trunion design for rack and pinion table adjustment.
That's it really, different paint, basically anything that sounds like an exotic Italian sports car, and is over that 200kg benchmark will be a good'un!
Those Italians are renowned the world over for their ingenuity,
but it's not only bandsaws you know!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7eYB_xu7WE


Those old generation Italian saws can be bought for the same money as a new single phase curve cutting machine (anything under 16" in my view)
You will spot an Italian machine a mile away, the frames are the same, basically ACM's line of SNA, or heavier SNAC or equal to the SNAC line, Centauro's CL types and they all share the same standard parts.
It might be worth scouring the net and adding "3 phase or three phase machines/machinery whilst your looking on CL.

Good luck

[Mike Kees]

It took me 6 years to find my Centauro 6oo . Used Italian saws are harder to come by where I live than other places. I could have bought several off ebay,and gone for a long road trip,however I had a good 18'' saw so I just waited until I found what I wanted and then I pounced. Literally I was on my way within half an hour of seeing the add and contacting the seller. My saw came from Calgary which is a 7 hour round trip for me ,I have purchased many machines from this city over the years. If you are looking used leave no stone unturned in your search,I talk to as many people as I can in other trades at jobsites,the lumber yards etc. Plus dig through all the classified adds I can find,used dealers ,auctions etc. Good luck.

[Randy Heinemann]

It's hard to recommend a brand because everyone has their favorites. I own a Rikon 14" with enclosed cabinet and 1 1/2 HP motor (not sure what the current model number is). It is excellent for resawing, cutting curves, ripping instead of a table saw, and cutting bowl blanks from chunks of wood. I don't personally believe that, for hobby woodworkers, anything larger than a 14" is necessary. An 18" would be great but probably not required. The biggest advantage to the larger saw is power. I can't think of one situation where I needed larger than 11" resaw capacity which is what my 14" has. With an 18" the feed would be quicker than the 14" (larger motor) but I'm not always sure a faster feed does the best job.

If you can afford it and have room, I have always thought it is a great idea to buy one saw for resawing and one for curve cutting, ripping, etc. That way you don't have to go through the process of changing blades and setting up the guides etc. to move from one operation to the next. Ideally you'd want 2 of the same saws so you could, if desired, switch blades between them. I have not bought the second one because I'm not sure if I'd really get the value. You can buy a 10" for curve cutting but ripping on that small a saw can be a problem with larger boards.

While 2 saws are definitely a great idea, it's difficult to justify the expense unless you do a lot of resawing and other bandsaw cutting.

So maybe start out with a single 14" until you see what you really use a bandsaw for.

[Todd Sebek]

I have found a Laguna 18BX for sale on CL with a mobile base for $1725. The owner says that he has made about 2 cuts with it and has decided to get out of the hobby. What are yalls thoughts? Looks very new.

[Todd Sebek]

Hey everyone!
Thank you all for your help! I finally got my first bandsaw. I looked for about 4 months on CL and finally found a MM16 (Second generation) with 8 blades (1” Carbide x2) and a Lenox tensioning device. It was 60 miles from my house and I really enjoyed the man that I bought it from. THANK you again for your input. I’m really excited out this one.

[Dave Sabo]

Great saw especially for your first time.

but , we really need to see pictures.